| System: PC, PS3, X360 | Review Rating Legend | |
| Dev: Raven Software | 1.0 - 1.9 = Avoid | 4.0 - 4.4 = Great |
| Pub: Activision | 2.0 - 2.4 = Poor | 4.5 - 4.9 = Must Buy |
| Release: June 29, 2010 | 2.5 - 2.9 = Average | 5.0 = The Best |
| Players: 1 (2+ Online) | 3.0 - 3.4 = Fair | |
| ESRB Rating: Mature | 3.5 - 3.9 = Good | |
Throughout the course of the game, you’ll find a large number of destroyed boxes, locked lockers, collapsed walkways, decrepit reel to reel recorders, and shattered staircases. Without the TMD, these things would either be worthless or impassible, but the TMD’s ability to revitalize them allows you to take advantage of their original states. Using the TMD in this fashion is quite necessary to make it through the game and will often give the observant player both extra health and weapon upgrade pickups as well as clearer glimpses into the mystery of what has transpired on the island.
This mixture of investigating the island, solving puzzles using the TMD, and gunning down hordes of soldiers and failed experiments is fairly well paced and almost always enjoyable. In fact, one of my few complaints with the single-player experience comes from the reel to reel recordings that you’ll find scattered throughout the game. While Singularity is usually quite good about pushing you forward through its fairly linear experience, whenever you find a voice recording, you are forced to stay close in order to hear its message. With so much of this game seemingly taking cues from BioShock, I find it hard to imagine why the player is unable to pick up these recordings and play them at their leisure. Clearly this is a minor gripe but it really does needlessly slow down the experience.
On top of the single-player campaign, Singularity also comes with an interesting, but fairly limited, multiplayer component. The multiplayer only has two modes and a handful of maps for each. One mode is your standard team deathmatch, with six soldiers squaring off against six creatures, while the other simply has these two teams attempting to either attack or defend beacons. Certainly, there is a severe lack of options to be had here but what makes the multiplayer interesting are all of the TMD and creature powers that add varying gameplay and strategies to the otherwise limited experience. For instance, one class of soldiers can teleport while another has the ability to heal themselves and others. This may not keep you around for hundreds of hours, but it is a nice, albeit small, addition to the very entertaining single-player campaign.
How can you go wrong with mixing a little bit of mystery in with a lot of shooting, unique weaponry, and time manipulation? While I’m not entirely sure, Singularity clearly avoided any major missteps that could have derailed its entertaining experience. The single-player campaign is great and the multiplayer component is a nice little addition, although you likely won’t feel compelled to spend a ton of time with it. Raven Software has made a fun game here, be sure to check it out if you have any interest in spending some time with an FPS over the summer.
By
Adam Brown
News Director
Game Features:
